Propositions of War
by Shari Maxwell
Summary: The world is raging a war that has left no one unharmed, yet two soldiers find themselves fighting for the same objective while being allied on opposing sides. Heero/Duo
1. Chapter 1

_Hesitation is death. _

_Hovering over the bodies of the dead does nothing but allow you to become one of the many corpses. Looking into the sky ablaze with fires, shattered by the screaming machines will only cause fear to awaken. Ignore the cries of the wounded and avoid the barrages with instinct only. Never look back to see if the enemy is lost, never look back to see their glee… Surviving is the only victory in this war…_

_Hesitation is not an option…_

_Hesitation is defeat._

----

Ascending flights of stairs rapidly with absolute silence was a skill the young man had obtained in the early years of the war. With each step he climbed closer and closer to the battlefield and left the security of the Underground. Although conditions were horribly uncomfortable and unsanitary, the greatest chance of surviving was to submerge yourself where soldiers seldom searched.

His calloused hands gripped the metal bars of the ladder and twisted the hatch's handle as the rusty metal resisted. Three clockwise rotations unfastened every lock keeping the war outside, and with one last heave the door was flung open. Without a moment to spare the man hauled himself up from safety and carefully shut the access to the Underground. All the locks automatically clicked into place, and the man turned away.

The air was tense and still, the calm before the storm, and the young man smiled at his timing. Slinging an empty duffel bag over his shoulder he hurried toward the nearest building and listened for the voices of soldiers or any sounds of warfare. Yet the whole city appeared to have died overnight. Taking advantage of his luck, the man quickly scouted out the best looking place to gather supplies. An abandoned apartment complex stood in ruins about sixty feet away from the man's current position, but he took a risk and ran towards the building never allowing fear to creep up on him.

A shattered window allowed him to perform a dive roll which landed him into someone's old bedroom. The timeworn wallpaper curled at the floor and ceiling all around the room, and the entire room appeared to have been ransacked. Although as the man cautiously crept into the next room it was made apparent whoever had been here before had not been searching for rations or necessities. The only thing that was missing from the apartment was its old tenant, but everything else was left behind.

"Fucking monsters…" Turning away from the destruction, the young man approached the kitchenette and rummaged through cabinets for unspoiled food. There were packages of cheap junk food and canned vegetables which were promptly stored in the duffel bag. The refrigerator contained nothing that was still edible other than a half-empty bottle of water, so everything was left alone.

The bathroom was the next place to search as there was always a chance of there being some medicine being left behind. Approaching the room the young man stopped. Taking a deep breath he continued and threw open the door and turned immediately to the medicine cabinet above the sink. Opening it there wasn't much, but there was some aspirin and analgesics.

The flies continued to thunder and the noise roared in the young man's ears, but he couldn't look towards them. Couldn't face the reality in the old tenant's bathtub, couldn't lay eyes on defeat so bitter. Prying the gun away resulted in vomiting, but there was no time to waste so the man did not allow the vulnerability to slow him down.

Zipping the duffel bag, he hastily left the bathroom but left the door ajar clinging to some pointless hope that the horror would be remedied by someone. Returning back to the bedroom of the apartment, he searched the room to be sure nothing of value was left behind, but anything of value was taken long ago and sold for to pay for a soldier's whore.

"Don't move," the young man froze at the voice and he calculated his chances. So far they were very slim. "Put the bag down, put your hands on your head, and slowly turn towards me. If you attempt to escape I guarantee your death is the only result."

_Survival is victory._

Fierce, sapphire eyes stared at the soldier and hinted at a mischievous nature in the young man. His pale skin, most likely from living in the Underground, was smooth and elicited an almost ethereal glow which was offset by the long, brunette braid trailing down the young man's back. The soldier did not react to the evidence the young man was only around sixteen years of age, but the soldier himself was in that vicinity as well.

"State your name."

"Why should I? Aren't I about to join the rest of this city in hell?"

The soldier was silent and his eyes observed the cocky grin, but his hand never even twitched despite provocation. "I repeat: state your name."

"Duo Maxwell," he replied trying to see any falter any hesitation in the soldier. There was none.

"Are you part of the rebel faction Underground?"

Duo felt his jaw tighten and could read the recognition on the soldier's face. He hoped that wasn't his final mistake. Yet the soldier appeared to waver for a moment in some sort of indecision that only the slight relaxing of his trigger finger allowed Duo to detect.

_No hesitation._

Whirling around, Duo disarmed the soldier with a swift kick that caused a snapping sound to emit from the soldier's wrist. Thinking the injury would cause the man to go into shock, Duo hesitated for one second to see the reaction, but instead of tending to his wrist the soldier began to search for his lost gun. Without wasting another second, Duo snatched up his duffel bag and leaped through the window with his arms crossed to take the damage from any remaining glass.

Duo knew he should not go back to the same access hatch he had left the Underground through, but he had no choice because the soldier was obviously not an ordinary man searching for glory. He was a machine, despite the moment of weakness, Duo knew facing the soldier again would probably result in his death.

Sprinting down the street there were not other patrolling soldiers to hinder him, and Duo quickly ducked down and began to unfasten the hatch. As the locks clicked open Duo barely opened the hatch enough for himself and the duffel bag to slip through before pulling it shut behind him. Jumping down the ladder he could feel the adrenaline rush begin to die down in his system and suddenly felt a bolt of pain shoot through his entire arm.

His hand reacted from reflexes to put pressure on top of a bleeding wound, and instinctively he searched the ground to see if he had left a trail. None of the scratches from the glass on his arms were deep enough to cause too much bleeding, and luckily Duo found his new wound was not bleeding too badly yet.

"How did that son of a bitch manage to shoot me…?"

----

Navigating the Underground never became any easier no matter how long a person resided there. A new tunnel was always discovered and longtime residents would tell stories of them being lost for days amongst the labyrinth, but giving indication of where the bases were was forbidden. If a soldier were ever brave enough to try to scout out the Underground there couldn't be anything beneficial left behind for the intruder.

Duo felt his way in the darkness against the wall and left the access point at least sixty feet behind him before he dared to flick open his lighter. The only thing he had left from the time before the war, the time when his family was alive, the time when every day was a struggle between life and death.

A sound was made that served as a signal between the Underground recruits that allowed them to differentiate a friend from foe. Three light taps echoed down empty corridors and Duo responded with a short, high-pitch whistle. Another person turned a corner holding a small lantern that emitted minimal light, but the small amount of light still illuminated the lean, blonde teenager in an unearthly manner.

"It's unusual to see you this far out from the main base, Quatre. Or were you just eager to see me?" Duo grinned as he approached the blonde. Flicking his lighter shut and shoving it in his pocket, Duo proceeded to attempt to sling his arm across Quatre's shoulders immediately resulted in severe pain in Duo's right shoulder. "Fucking lucky bastard…"

"You managed to get hurt on a supply mission? What happened to being the most talented soldier and scavenger in the entire Underground?" Quatre mocked the brunette before raising the lantern up to investigate the wound. "It's not too severe and it's not endangering any major arteries or organs so we need to return to base quickly."

Shaking his head, Duo smiled. "Now you remind me of that soldier I met. Cold, distant, vaguely resembling a robot."

A confused look flashed on the blonde's face, but Duo passed him and turned the same corner that his friend had emerged from. The muffled whispers of voices sounded like screams to Duo as he looked upon Quatre's personal bodyguard squad. Although Quatre had often tried to convince the men to leave him alone, being a descendent of royalty forced to join a war did not allow these bodyguards to ever fully relax. They were always near Quatre, and many of the Underground members had come to recognize them as somewhat honorary members as they had for Quatre.

"How did your recon mission go?"

"Successful, the next big target is London, just as expected. It was only a matter of time before the neutrality act would be torn apart. England has no true military power left for a real conflict to develop, so it won't be long before the unconditional surrender." Quatre's eyes suggested the desire to pity the nation, but the war had hardened the teenager as it had all people participating. "We are also moving the main base tomorrow at dawn. So be prepared."

_No hesitation._

The two young men continued down the tunnel, now followed by the bodyguards, until the entire group reached what was known as the main base. Tents were pitched up all around the enormous cavern with lanterns lit inside each one. Shadows of men quietly resting or distracting themselves from their situation never caused any longtime recruit to stare.

An enormous, black tent towered over the others in the middle of the cavern and no light could be seen from the outside although everyone knew there was always someone awake. Duo shielded his eyes from the light as he pulled back the tent's flap and silently wished he was back in darkness. Light only revealed the worst secrets of the world, and only uncovered more disheartening news.

"Report."

Duo slumped into an incredibly uncomfortable, metal chair and placed his duffel bag on a huge table nearby. As two men went to inspect the bag and contents Duo began, "Battlefield was silent, searched for supplies in abandoned residency, was ambushed by enemy, but _obviously _evaded and suffered only minor injuries."

"A mere foot soldier caught you off guard? Maxwell, the war is finally taking its toll on you." A husky man observed the aggravated teenager who was now on his feet. "The mission was a stealth mission and _obviously _you failed at that much. You are sure that the soldier did not have any way of finding the access hatch?"

"I doubt that was merely a foot soldier… probably one of those damn, greedy mercenaries that are throwing themselves into this war to get a nice paycheck! I didn't fail that mission, it just didn't go flawlessly as hoped. But when does anything go perfectly anymore?"

The room fell silent for a moment before the husky man spoke again, "Well despite what happened, you appeared to have gathered some useful rations. Although I don't understand why you picked up a gun."

Duo snatched the gun away from one of the inspectors and slid it into his back pocket. Without another word he exited the tent and returned to his own which was… cozier and way more compact. He slid the gun into a backpack that was tucked away in the corner and unrolled his flopped onto his sleeping bag.

Sleep came quickly.

----

**Hello, hello! It's been quite some time since I have written _anything_ other than gross essays, etc. for school so it is a glorious feeling to be producing a new story. Hopefully this glory that I have felt has been transferred onto my computer and has created a marvelous story! Although I will obviously let you readers be the judges of whether or not this can be described as glorious... or disturbing... or just plain stupid. **

**Anyways I was kind of inspired by some things I learned about World War I and II in throughout this year so I am going to write a war fanfic with the Gundam boys. Yes, I promise somewhat reasonable amounts of updates, so just give this a chance.**

**Any critique is appreciated, flames aren't really appreciated but I won't die if someone flames me so... yeah. If you are such a loser you can't think of anything really helpful to say to a struggling writer, then that sucks for you. This really wasn't supposed to be a rant. But anyways...**

**Feedback is loved! R & R people! R & R!**

**~ Shari Maxwell**


	2. Chapter 2

_A quaint house towered above a young child playing on a cheerfully green lawn while a couple sat on the front porch watching the child and talking. Attempting to imitate the roars of a dinosaur captured all of the child's attention, never seeing the soldier dressed in a black uniform as he approached the couple, and then suddenly the scene whirled in flurry of images and a chilling scream. Gunshots, screaming, crying… Everything became a blur… Another boy beckoned for the now fearful child to come into his home, but fear compelled the child to run away._

A cold sweat drenched Duo's sleeping bag as he woke from his nightmare. He unzipped the sleeping bag and emerged from his tent to find everyone else packing up their belongings, preparing for another move, and Duo sighed before following suit. All he had to keep track of was his sleeping bag, tent, and his backpack containing the few possessions he bothered to carry with him.

Completing his task, Duo went in search of Quatre and found the blonde already packed and ready to leave, he had probably been packed hours before anyone else as he loved to be efficient. "What time is it, buddy?"

"Around three… It's hard to tell exactly since there's nothing for a reference."

Living in the Underground left much to be desired, but anything was better than the internment camps on the surface. It was either the camps or house arrest which meant constant monitoring for signs of subversion by the government.

"I'm going to go wash up before we take off, don't leave me behind!" With a slight smile Quatre nodded in acknowledgment of Duo's request.

As the brunette turned away he tried to push all thoughts about his dream from his mind, but something continued to bother him no matter how hard he tried. Usually the nightmare didn't linger as he had dreamed it many times before, but something in particular was nagging at him this time. Reaching the area where the Underground had created makeshift showers, Duo stripped down, and turned the overhead nozzle to allow the chilly water to engulf him. He unbraided his hair and ran his fingers through it hoping to get it at least a little cleaner.

There was never a shortage of dirt underground.

Finishing up his shower he braided his hair once again and put the same clothes on once again. The husky man appeared once again, and passed Duo by without any reaction preferring not to form relationships with recruits the man didn't even tell anyone his name anymore, most called him 'Chief' or 'Boss'. Duo didn't have any real desire to become closer to the Chief so he continued back to base.

Small families, single men and women, and recruits to the Underground stood around never making eye contact with anyone else. Refugees and recruits never mingled, but the two groups were usually close-knit when separated. Sometimes the refugees would later become recruits as well, but it was rare because the jobs usually required a lot of skill and readiness to lose your life.

Scavengers were the ones who gathered the supplies and rations to keep the Underground alive and also scouted out the situation of the surface, soldiers maintained the peace and also fought if necessary against any rogue soldiers, and medics were the ones to tend to any injuries or needs for medical assistance as well as taking care and recognizing the needs of both refugees and recruits.

Duo was a scavenger as well as a soldier because he was proficient in either field, and he loved the positions as they gave him an important role in the Underground. Quatre was the most important medic of the Underground, and was one of the best people for the job as he was disciplined yet quite sensitive and appealing to people.

The Chief stood in front of the crowd, "We will commence the repositioning! Everyone follow the leaders and they shall lead us to our next base!"

Snatching up his belongings, Duo walked beside Quatre who had fulfilled his promise and waited until the brunette appeared once again. The two walked side-by-side in silence as they focused on keeping up with the group ahead of them.

"How did you sleep?" Quatre asked nonchalantly, knowing about Duo's nightmares, but he didn't indicate any urge to pry.

"Same as usual, nightmares, but for some reason something is different this time. Everything was the same… but I still feel like I'm missing something. Like I'm supposed to understand something from my dream, but I can't figure it out." Duo had slung his backpack over one should but shifted it to the other after a moment of silence. "I haven't been this bothered about it since the first time I had the nightmare. So it's kinda weird… ya know?"

Piercing green eyes analyzed Duo carefully as if trying to seek out the answer from Duo. "You never really told me the details about yesterday's mission. Especially about the soldier you evaded."

Usually Duo was able to easily open up to the friendly blonde, but for some reason he choked. "I don't know… there's nothing really to tell. The soldier he was probably our age and he was strange. Almost machine-like, or that's the kind of vibe I got, but he was obviously well trained. Although it was strange because as disciplined as he appeared, he hesitated for a second after he asked me about the Underground."

"Is that really it?"

"Yeah, what do you expect me to say?"

"Describe the soldier. Whatever minute details you can remember."

"Well… he had short brunette hair, Prussian blue eyes, and a very serious face." Duo tried to imitate a scowl, but Quatre didn't find the imitation funny. "He was lean, about my height, and tan but that's probably from actually being out in the sun."

Realization suddenly sparked Duo's memory. The soldier… he was the boy that had offered protection to Duo in his nightmares. After dreaming him for countless years, Duo couldn't believe he wouldn't put two and two together, but Quatre seemed to remember the description of the boy from Duo's dreams and had figured it out. Sometimes Duo wondered if Quatre's skull was large enough for all of the brains he possessed.

"You don't really think they could be the same people?" Duo asked slowly, not wanting to hear the answer.

"Perhaps, but you can't really be certain. It wouldn't be surprising to find that the boy became a part of the new government's military. There's only three options left for people now: work for the government, find the Underground, or die." Quatre was cautious when saying the third option.

The group ahead of the two teenagers began to slow as they approached their another base. The leaders of the two bases went off into another large tent similar to the one belonging to the main base, while everyone else took the time to rest. Duo tried to rationalize his new discovery. It's quite a coincidence to meet this ghost from his past, considering he had always figured that boy had died, but never had he even contemplated the idea the boy had survived. Not that it really mattered since they were on opposite sides of the war.

Duo left Quatre's side and wandered down a side tunnel seeing a different access point at the end. He knew it wasn't wise to randomly leave the Underground and he could get in a lot of trouble with the Chief, but an uncontrollable urge told him to go. A set of stone stairs led up to the ladder which Duo climbed to get to the hatch. Twisting the handle until the locks clicked, Duo then pushed the hatch open and dragged himself up. The sky was dark yet loud voices barked orders which echoed through the night air as a small squad of soldiers stood alert nearby.

Stealthily creeping closer, Duo crouched behind a small wall and listened to the orders being yelled at the soldiers. "Do not leave any enemy alive! We are taking no prisoners! If any civilians are found and become an obstacle, do not hesitate to eliminate them! You have your orders, now go!"

Footsteps of dispersing groups of soldiers resounded throughout the empty streets, but Duo didn't move until he heard silence. Checking the area, Duo made sure everything was clear before he left his hiding place and backpack in search of one group of the soldiers. After a few minutes he managed to find a group that was apparently patrolling the street.

"I can't believe we got stuck with this lousy job… We even have the incredible Sergeant Yuy in charge of our group and all we get is patrol duty for the third night in a row!" A soldier leaned against a building as he continued to complain. "Sergeant is the one who has done the most work around here with _our_ help and still we get stupid assignments."

"Don't complain, at least we aren't going to die. You should consider yourself lucky that we aren't on the front lines right now with the war going so badly." Another soldier said while still observing his surroundings with alert eyes.

Duo knelt in the nearby brush and quietly attempted to lie on his stomach, but when doing so he kicked a small bush. The movement caught the attention of one soldier who silently signaled the group of them to move towards Duo and find out the source of the movement.

"Shit!" The brunette began to move away from the area, but knew he wouldn't be able to get away without being noticed. So he decided to just be reckless and run like hell.

He stood up and immediately began to sprint down the street back toward the access hatch. Soldiers began shouting and shooting in Duo's general direction, but thankfully his black clothes helped him blend in with the night. Rounding a corner Duo came upon yet another squad of soldiers patrolling and instantly caught their attention.

Without a moment's hesitation Duo kicked in the nearest building's door and ran inside. He flew down the hallway and found a staircase leading to another level, as he climbed the steps he could already hear all of the soldiers nearing the entrance of the building, but Duo had already found another staircase which led him into an attic filled to the ceiling with junk. After a second the brunette had found a large trunk which he knew he would be able to squeeze into, so he jumped inside and closed the lid. While trying to catch his breath and slow his heartbeat down, Duo could hear the soldiers charging up the stairs.

"Sergeant Yuy, we have soldiers checking all the other rooms, do you want us to help you in here?"

"No, look downstairs." The voice caused Duo to freeze as he knew the voice… the soldier from yesterday… the boy from his dreams…

Holding his breath, Duo felt like if he even breathed he would be found. Somehow this man Yuy would find him, some instinct warned him, and true to this warning the lid of the trunk began to creak open. The few seconds seemed to last an eternity as Duo watched in horror as his dumb excursion caused him to get himself killed.

_Survival is the only victory… death is defeat._

The soldier opened the trunk and observed Duo cramped inside, but rather than killing him on the spot the soldier closed the lid once again. A small _click_ sounded and Duo found himself locked in the trunk.

"Sir, there is no sign of the man. What should we do?"

"Continue your patrol, I will join you shortly."

Minutes passed by and Duo remained still inside of his prison until he heard another click of the trunk being unlocked. Slowly the lid was opened and the soldier Yuy stood above Duo. Neither spoke as Yuy backed away a few paces and Duo climbed out of the box.

"My men have all left this building."

"What should I do? Fucking kiss you for letting me live so far? For all I know you're going to just give me some hope and then shoot me in the back." Duo narrowed his eyes at Yuy, but couldn't force himself to hate the soldier completely. The image of the young boy kept flashing in his mind. The soldier stared at Duo until the teenager began to feel uncomfortable under the intense gaze. "You're creeping me out with all the staring, Sergeant Yuy."

"My name is Heero Yuy… call me Heero."


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3:**

_His muscles screamed from the pain as he struggled to keep running, but his body was finally surrendering and the child began to slow down. Exhaustion finally overwhelmed the small boy, his body collapsing and falling to the pavement. He could hear the footsteps drawing closer, and yet his body wouldn't react to his commands. Tears began to well up in his eyes as he felt a numbness enveloping his body and mind. He had lost his parents and now he knew he was going to die too._

_People encircled the child with guns pointed down as if he was a threat, but one man stepped forward and inspected him. "You were such a hassle, it would be a waste just to kill you so quickly. Perhaps the good doctor could find some use for you." _

_The boy wanted to resist, but on man slung the child over his shoulder and the only sound made was a soft groan from the pain. Continuing to cry silently, the boy already knew it would have been better to have died. _

_----_

"What are you trying to be, my friend? Don't pull this bullshit on me, alright? At least leave some of my dignity intact and kill me now." Duo remained still and rigid, his whole body ready to react, but his mind knowing there wasn't much hope. "Isn't your wonderful Duke going to have your head for showing mercy to a traitor?"

"This is not mercy," Heero gestured with his head towards the door. "I am not allowing you to leave here freely. And I feel no need to have someone so lowly address me with the title given to me by the great leader of our country. Fortunately you will be allowed to live for a little longer, Duo Maxwell."

Feeling every muscle tense Duo had to restrain himself from blurting out his question. He wanted so badly to ask the soldier if he remembered him from so many years ago, although it was unlikely considering they were young and only met for a brief moment. Despite his urge to inquire, Duo remained silent and slowly walked toward the door.

Heero abruptly grabbed both of Duo's arms and forced them into restraints, and then shoved Duo through the door. Descending the flights of stairs there were soldiers apparently still scouting the first floor, but as soon as the pair emerged from the staircase they all froze at attention. Their unwavering obedience sickened Duo, because he knew the true nature of their leader, and he knew that none of these men truly comprehended the contemptibility of their governments actions.

"No one is to harm him, we are taking him to see Dr. Josef Mengele. Everyone prepare to return to base," Heero gave commands with a persuasion that made Duo even want to listen. But a chill ran down his spine when hearing the name of the man he had always hoped to avoid.

As the two soldiers left the building, Duo realized there was nothing he could do, but hope that his assumptions about his near future were wrong.

----

Being forced to sit amongst a handful of dimwitted expendables was not Duo's idea of a good time, although when given no other option, Duo attempted to block the men out. He was now only waiting for the opportunity in which he could make an escape, whether he that meant living or dying, Duo knew he could not reach the hands of Dr. Mengele.

"It's weird that such a young guy is our fucking commanding officer… How can he be so good but so young?"

"You're just jealous, Friedman. Not all of us can be talented and good looking-"

"Who cares about the sergeant? I'm curious as to why that freak doctor is interested in some defector like this kid. There ain't nothing special about him really… well except for those eyes. That's not a natural color."

All the men suddenly went silent, and Duo only closed his eyes and continued to ignore the men. When the talking began again, the young man continued his reserve, but the conversation suddenly became interesting for the prisoner. The man name Friedman seemed to be the biggest gossip among the men despite his gruff demeanor.

"Supposedly our division is getting a new assignment, and supposedly this is going to be huge. Perhaps the Sergeant will get a promotion if all goes well… although who really knows? We were promised some pretty big action on this assignment and the only objective was to capture this little punk."

The truck lurched to a stop, and all the men stood up while two of them escorted Duo out. Heero was a few yards away and was talking to an older man who was unmistakably the infamous Dr. Josef Mengele. Even the Underground was painfully aware of his actions and how he brought about the current cataclysmic international war.

All the soldiers stood at attention as Heero and the doctor approached the group. Duo tried to remain indifferent, but he could feel the panic rising inside of him. Once the distance had been closed, the anxiety inside of Duo abruptly subsided, and his reckless nature returned in full force. As the scientist turned his attention toward the young hostage, Duo looked into the man's eyes and spit in his face.

No one spoke, and even the rather emotionless Heero seemed a little shocked, although the silence didn't last.

"You little bastard! I was going to let you off easy… but you have _no_ idea what's in store for you now!" Mengele angrily used a handkerchief to wipe his face before turning back Heero. "I want to commend you for success and so quickly too. Without your aid, capturing this subject would have been impossible. I will definitely recommend you for a promotion next time I see the Duke."

Mengele walked past Duo, and the soldiers pushed him towards the direction the scientist had gone. For some reason Duo reached up and cross that always hung around his neck, snapped the thin chain, and tossed it to Heero. Afterwards he tried to ask himself why he had done such a thing, but Duo found no answer.

Heero caught the necklace and looked at Duo questioningly, but all Duo could do was grin back at the soldier before being led into the dimly lit building.

----

"_You're an interesting child."_

_I'm not._

"_There are so many ideas that I have wished to test, but all of my subjects were too weak to survive. Perhaps you shall be different and live up to my expectations."_

_Why me?_

"_Your parents were wise to hide you, but that didn't really work out for them, did it? They should have just complied like everyone else did, and now they suffered the consequences. Although they would have been lovely specimens too."_

_They died because of me?_

"_Now hold still, I'm ready for our first experiment."_

_----_

Mengele ordered the men to sit Duo across from him as the doctor sat in a plump chair behind his desk. Shooing the soldiers away with the wave of his hand, Mengele remained silent until the two men had left the room entirely.

"You haven't changed much in the six years since you escaped, Duo. I'm so glad to finally have you once again, you have always been my favorite specimen, although you seem different… Ah! You're too submissive, given up hope and resigned yourself to a horrible fate. That's no fun for me." The scientist suddenly pulled a gun from behind his desk, "Maybe I will give you some hope? Ever heard of Russian roulette? Such a beautiful game. I will give you two chances to escape your fate, either I will die and you will be free, or _you_ will die and be free. Care to play?"

Despite his best efforts not to react, Duo couldn't resist. "Don't think your games will break me so easily."

Without a word Mengele raised the barrel of the gun and pressed it to his right temple. "Round one…"

Duo's breath hitched as he heard the hollow _click_ echo throughout the room. Even knowing that his only escape was death, Duo couldn't help but feel relief he knew the next bullet would prevent any torture or experiments to be done on him. Mengele smirked as he pointed the gun at Duo. "Round two…"

Duo wished for death, he didn't care how, even this was more suitable than the humiliation he would be put through. The kind of treatment that would never stop haunting him or invading his dreams. Anything was better.

A grin emerged on the teenager's face, he knew Russian roulette had only one blank, so the next bullet was already waiting. Time seemed to slow down as Duo watched Mengele pull the trigger, closing his eyes for the last time, and strangely enough the last person that came to his mind was Heero.

Now Duo knew why he had given Heero his treasured cross, because at least one person would remember him, even if the memory was only of getting rid of an enemy. Somebody would remember him…

_Click._

_----_

Waking up imprisoned like an animal was not Duo's ideal morning, but being around the even more miserable long-term prisoners slightly elevated Duo's mood. Many of the men and women surrounding him were filthy and silent, it was obvious Mengele had broken them long before Duo's arrival. Lying on the provided mattress, Duo began to formulate plans to escape, but no idea he came up with seemed feasible.

"You're going to die here." The man next door suddenly spoke out, and a young woman in the cell across looked at him fearfully. She appeared to be Duo's age, and a recent addition. "Mengele only messes around with us as long as we're useful and entertaining for him."

Duo ignored the man, but the woman couldn't resist. "How can he be allowed to do this to us? This isn't right! We were promised if we agreed to one test we'd be let go! He has to let us go!"

"He lied to you. You aren't ever leaving here alive." The man added ominously, but Duo wanted to slap the girl for being so naïve. He'd already learned that even a death threat couldn't be trusted if Mengele was the one delivering it.

All the hushed whispers ceased as footsteps could be heard descending the stairs. Duo remained where he was and concentrated on the ceiling, the footsteps stopped at Duo's cell, but he didn't look at them.

"Resting for your debut? I didn't think you'd be so-" Mengele began to mock the teenager when he was abruptly interrupted.

"You have to let me go! Please! I don't want to die… I don't deserve it… Please!" The woman continued hysterically pleading with Mengele and the soldiers alongside the scientist. Slowly he turned toward the woman and Duo was compelled to watch the scene. Her hopeful gaze was suddenly overwhelmed with fear as Mengele took on of the soldiers guns and aimed. "No! No please-!"

One gunshot and the entire building was silenced. Duo turned away from the sight of the woman still cowering in the back corner, blood steadily flowing onto the ground and into the cell of whoever was beside her, but no one made a sound. Mengele turned his attention back to Duo, "We will leave her as a reminder to the rest of you. Now then, back to business."

----

**I want to apologize for the long wait... for some reason my inspiration suddenly died on me for this story so it took a while to finish this chapter. I honestly don't feel that this was a great chapter, but I will make it up to all the readers with the next chapter. I swear.**

**But I'm also curious to see if anyone gets the WWII reference I make in this chapter... I guess we'll see?**

**~ Shari Maxwell**


End file.
